Theater | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh City Paper: Greensburg offers few outlets for kids and teens who have caught the acting bug. That's why Leona "Leo" Liotta considered themself fortunate enough to attend Stage Right!, a tuition-based, nonprofit performing arts school and professional theater company located in the small Western Pennsylvania city.
5 comments:
Having a college student revisit their trauma in a theatrical space isn't uncommon, it happens almost everywhere. However, that doesn't mean that it means we should expect it to happen. We have to listen to the people who are speaking their truth so we can get rid of predators and harassers, not just in theatre, but everywhere. The idea that people came out in opposition of the Stage Right Survivors and tried to excuse the behavior of the actual perpetrators is ridiculous. I understand that context is important, and you need the full story, and you had to be there, but these people, these kids, are just trying to tell people, "hey I was hurt and no one did anything about it." You have to listen to them, otherwise people will continue to get away with hurting others. My condolences to the Stage Right Survivors, and I hope they can heal.
Wow this is awful what happened, and seems to be continuing to happen at this theatre. I am so glad that this is being brought into light and parents can know this information and not send their children to this abusive environment. One quick google search of Stage Right! Performing arts brings up this article as the second link, which is great for anyone looking up this company. Something that stuck with me from this article is that the kids were told “this is how theatre is” which brings up the discussion of the industry as a whole and how the culture surrounding working environments needs to change drastically. It is really upsetting that this man that most of the allegations are against is still on the board and so many people are coming to his defense. Creating a safe environment for the children needs to be the priority of this company and clearly over 70 kids at least were not safe with this man working there, among others.
This story is very upsetting, although not entirely surprising. In theatre environments as well as anywhere with a power dynamic, especially with children, it’s easy for those in power to abuse it. What’s especially upsetting is one child’s confession that they believed theatre was “just like that”; an abusive space where a prerequisite for performing was being put in physical and emotional danger. Many people I know, including myself, have worked on productions where they did not feel respected or safe. This is not only harmful to any one specific show, but also to the longevity of the community as a whole. It’s very unfortunate that such an abuse of power was allowed to go on for so long and affect so many children. I hope that we can more closely examine the people we put into leadership positions in the future, to prevent more situations like this from occurring.
It’s infuriating to see how kids were being taken advantage of emotionally and the school’s lack of a response. Theater is known for being an inclusive space for all genders and sexual orientation, but it’s clear the directors of Stage Right! took advantage of it. Additionally, one good experience doesn’t negate another’s upsetting or traumatic one. It’s frustrating that people are brushing it off as situations that all kids have to deal with or something they’re making up. This feeds a culture of not believing and dismissing trauma survivors. Past bad behavior doesn’t justify current bad behavior. I hope the Board of Directors will at least suspend Marino from the board and begin an internal investigation, encouraging current or former students to reach out to the police with their stories, give current students a counselor, and begin to change their ways.
Liotta’s experience at Stage Right! is a sad reality of education in a very competitive industry. I know I’ve been personally affected by competition among peers in highschool theater. Beyond that, I’ve also experienced how theater educators can lord their position over vulnerable students. While the issues at Stage Right! are not worthy of police intervention, a betrayal of trust between a student and a mentor can taint a student’s learning for a lifetime. Even though theater is a competitive industry, I’m not a fan of the idea that everyone is my enemy and I need to beat my peers to get to the top. It seems at Stage Right!, Anthony Marino encourages the kind of interpersonal sabotage that can make collaborative art like theatre toxic and uncomfortable to create. I hope that I can spread some positive behavior like learning from one another and sharing skills, but that’s a problem for the future. Regardless, I hope Stage Right! reconstructs it’s ethos to create happier, safer students.
Post a Comment